Italy's Emanuel Perathoner achieved a remarkable feat at the Milan-Cortina Winter Paralympics, winning gold in men's LL2 snowboard cross on his Paralympic debut. The 39-year-old became only the second athlete to compete in both Winter Olympics and Paralympics, capping a journey that began eight years after his Olympic career seemed over. His dominant victory came in front of a home crowd in Cortina.

Perathoner's path to Paralympic glory was anything but straightforward. A devastating crash in 2021 left him with a destroyed knee and multiple fractures, seemingly ending his competitive career. After learning to walk again with a total knee replacement, he discovered Para-snowboarding while visiting a training camp. What began as a journey of recovery transformed into an elite athletic career, with 31 World Cup medals and three World Championship golds before his Paralympic debut.

Sunday's victory was particularly sweet for Perathoner, who had been defeated just three times since 2024. He dominated the final, finishing more than three seconds ahead of Australia's Ben Tudhope, with Korea's Lee Jehyuk taking bronze. The emotional win came in his home country, with family in attendance, making it a perfect culmination of four years of recovery and dedication.